With more cities across the world embracing green architecture, it’s no surprise that designers are getting creative with sustainable living.
However, who’d have have thought that bus stops could be bee-friendly, too? The Leicester City Council has partnered with outdoor advertising giant Clear Channel to replace and manage all of the city’s 479 bus shelters.
Every bus shelter will be overhauled and replaced with an eco-friendly alternative, with living roofs. They have been nicknamed the “Bee Bus Stops” by locals.
Each roof is planted with a mix of wildflowers and Sedum plants to enhance local biodiversity, which will also help to support the dwindling numbers of bees, butterflies, and other pollinating insects.
The city has an ongoing ‘Bee Roads’ program, where three and a half miles of roadside and roundabouts across the city have been devoted to wildflowers. It aims to make the city a welcoming place for pollinating insects, as the wildflowers provide food stops for them to refuel on the way to their destinations.
Bees aside, the new bus shelters add a much-needed touch of green and zen to the city. Who wouldn’t have a better time waiting for the bus if the bus shelter had its very own roof garden to look at?
In addition to the living roofs, all other bus shelters in the city will also be fitted with solar panels to power smart lighting to save on energy consumption.
As part of the council’s eco-friendly campaign, paper poster advertising will also be reduced across the city. Instead, advertisements will be replaced with digital advertising screens, powered by the solar panels and 100% renewable energy.
“We’ve already had some fantastic feedback from people who are as excited as we are to see this bee and butterfly-friendly revamp of bus shelters taking shape,” said Deputy City Mayor Councillor Adam Clarke.
Lovely to see the first of the new @clearchanneluk Living Roof, 🐝 bee-friendly 🐝 bus stops springing up across #Leicester.
There’ll be others appearing in the next few weeks.
Read more here: https://t.co/3W2IvxILZb pic.twitter.com/Zp4rFBGq4l
— Leicester City Council (@Leicester_News) May 27, 2021
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